Biophysical Society Thematic Meeting| Aussois 2019

Biology and Physics Confront Cell-Cell Adhesion

Poster Abstracts

12-POS Board 12 A PHYSICO-CHEMICAL MODEL OF CELL-CELL CONTACT FORMATION Silvia Grigolon 1 ; Jana Slovakova 2 ; Mateusz Sikora 2 ; Carl-Philipp Heisenberg 2 ; Guillaume Salbreux 1 ; 1 The Francis Crick Institute, London, United Kingdom 2 IST Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria Cell-cell contact growth and size is crucial for tissue integrity and proper development. Recent years have seen an in-depth study of the physical forces governing cell-cell contact formation and shape and of the chemical kinetics governing the linker molecules separately. Yet, how the interplay between the physical and chemical levels can induce and shape cell contacts and which are the key mechanisms governing this process is not known yet. In this work, we propose a novel complete model of cell contact formation and growth. By a combination of active-gel theory and linkers chemical dynamics, we aim to clarify the force diagram and the chemical processes that can allow for cell contact formation, growth and maintenance as observed in vertebrate early development.

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